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en-usPhys.org provides the latest news on earth science, climate changeScientists eavesdrop on volcanic rumblings to forecast eruptionsA new study has shown that monitoring inaudible low frequencies called infrasound produced by a type of active volcano could improve the forecasting of significant, potentially deadly eruptions.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-scientists-eavesdrop-volcanic-rumblings-eruptions.html
Earth Sciences Fri, 16 Feb 2018 12:04:02 ESTnews438005032Consumer and industrial products now a dominant urban air pollution sourceChemical products that contain compounds refined from petroleum, like household cleaners, pesticides, paints and perfumes, now rival motor vehicle emissions as the top source of urban air pollution, according to a surprising NOAA-led study.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-consumer-industrial-products-dominant-urban.html
Environment Thu, 15 Feb 2018 14:00:01 ESTnews437899880Geophysicists and atmospheric scientists partner to track typhoons' seismic footprintsClimatologists are often asked, "Is climate change making hurricanes stronger?" but they can't give a definitive answer because the global hurricane record only goes back to the dawn of the satellite era. But now, an intersection of disciplines—seismology, atmospheric sciences, and oceanography—offers an untapped data source: the continuous seismic record, which dates back to the early 20th century.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-geophysicists-atmospheric-scientists-partner-track.html
Earth Sciences Thu, 15 Feb 2018 13:38:36 ESTnews437924300Forest fires increasingly dominate Amazonian carbon emissions during droughtsCarbon emissions from the Brazilian Amazon are increasingly dominated by forest fires during extreme droughts rather than by emissions from fires directly associated with the deforestation process, according to a study in Nature Communications.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-forest-increasingly-dominate-amazonian-carbon.html
Environment Thu, 15 Feb 2018 09:56:43 ESTnews437910986Oceanographers solve mystery of phytoplankton survival in nutrient-poor PacificUpwelling in the eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean provides essential nutrients for the region's microscopic plants, but iron – a key ingredient that facilitates nitrogen consumption – is in short supply. To compensate, the phytoplankton band together to recycle the scarce metal and retain it in their upper-ocean habitat, scientists at the University of California, Irvine have discovered.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-oceanographers-mystery-phytoplankton-survival-nutrient-poor.html
Earth Sciences Thu, 15 Feb 2018 09:32:41 ESTnews437909547Maximizing the environmental benefits of autonomous vehiclesThe added weight, electricity demand and aerodynamic drag of the sensors and computers used in autonomous vehicles are significant contributors to their lifetime energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new study.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-maximizing-environmental-benefits-autonomous-vehicles.html
Environment Thu, 15 Feb 2018 08:00:03 ESTnews437894525Don't blame hurricanes for most big storm surges in NortheastHurricanes spawn most of the largest storm surges in the northeastern U.S., right? Wrong, according to a study by Rutgers University-New Brunswick scientists.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-dont-blame-hurricanes-big-storm.html
Earth Sciences Thu, 15 Feb 2018 01:54:59 ESTnews437882083How seafloor weathering drives the slow carbon cycleA previously unknown connection between geological atmospheric carbon dioxide cycles and the fluctuating capacity of the ocean crust to store carbon dioxide has been uncovered by two geoscientists from the University of Sydney.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-seafloor-weathering-carbon.html
Earth Sciences Wed, 14 Feb 2018 14:00:06 ESTnews437811567Risk of extreme weather events higher if Paris Agreement goals aren't metThe individual commitments made by parties of the United Nations Paris Agreement are not enough to fulfill the agreement's overall goal of limiting global temperature rise to less than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The difference between the U.N. goal and the actual country commitments is a mere 1 C, which may seem negligible. But a study from Stanford University, published Feb. 14 in Science Advances, finds that even that 1-degree difference could increase the likelihood of extreme weather.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-extreme-weather-events-higher-paris.html
Environment Wed, 14 Feb 2018 14:00:05 ESTnews437811449Analysis of major earthquakes supports stress reduction assumptionsA comprehensive analysis of 101 major earthquakes around the Pacific ring of fire between 1990 and 2016 shows that most of the aftershock activity occurred on the margins of the areas where the faults slipped a lot during the main earthquakes. The findings support the idea that the area of large slip during a major earthquake is unlikely to rupture again for a substantial time.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-analysis-major-earthquakes-stress-reduction.html
Earth Sciences Wed, 14 Feb 2018 14:00:03 ESTnews437811072A theory of physics explains the fragmentation of tropical forestsTropical forests around the world play a key role in the global carbon cycle and harbour more than half of the species worldwide. However, increases in land use in recent decades caused unprecedented losses of tropical forest. Scientists at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) have adapted a method from physics to describe the fragmentation of tropical forests mathematically. In the scientific journal Nature, they explain how this allows them to model and understand the fragmentation of forests on a global scale. They found that forest fragmentation on all three continents is close to a critical point beyond which the fragment number will strongly increase. This will have severe consequences for biodiversity and carbon storage.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-theory-physics-fragmentation-tropical-forests.html
Environment Wed, 14 Feb 2018 13:00:05 ESTnews437812127Projecting the impacts of climate changeHow might climate change affect the acidification of the world's oceans or air quality in China and India in the coming decades, and what climate policies could be effective in minimizing such impacts? To answer such questions, decision makers routinely rely on science-based projections of physical and economic impacts of climate change on selected regions and economic sectors. But the projections they obtain may not be as reliable or useful as they appear: Today's gold standard for climate impact assessments—model intercomparison projects (MIPs)—fall short in many ways.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-impacts-climate.html
Environment Wed, 14 Feb 2018 08:32:17 ESTnews437819521Polar vortex defies climate change in the SoutheastOverwhelming scientific evidence has demonstrated that our planet is getting warmer due to climate change, yet parts of the eastern U.S. are actually getting cooler. According to a Dartmouth-led study in Geophysical Research Letters, the location of this anomaly, known as the "U.S. warming hole," is a moving target.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-polar-vortex-defies-climate-southeast.html
Earth Sciences Wed, 14 Feb 2018 02:42:19 ESTnews437798359'Excess emissions' make significant contribution to air pollutionWhen Hurricane Harvey struck Texas in August, industrial facilities in the state shut down, then reopened a few days later. In doing so, they produced nearly 2,000 tons of "excess emissions"—air pollutants in addition to what was allowed as part of their normal operation.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-excess-emissions-significant-contribution-air.html
Environment Wed, 14 Feb 2018 02:37:06 ESTnews437798215Study finds earthquakes continue for years after gas field wastewater injection stopsEfforts to stop human-caused earthquakes by shutting down wastewater injection wells that serve adjacent oil and gas fields may oversimplify the challenge, according to a new study from seismologists at Southern Methodist University, Dallas.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-earthquakes-years-gas-field-wastewater.html
Earth Sciences Tue, 13 Feb 2018 15:05:38 ESTnews437756728Sampling bias might be distorting view of upheaval due to global warmingA small team of researchers from The University of Melbourne, the Georg Eckert Institute and Freie Universität has found problems with research related to assessing the propensity for war amid environmental changes due to global warming. In their paper published in the journal Nature Climate Change, the group argues that much of current research on the topic suffers from several bias flaws. Cullen Hendrix with the University of Denver outlines the arguments by the research team in the same journal issue and suggests future research efforts will have to be refocused if they are to be useful in predicting future conflicts based on global warming projections.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-sampling-bias-distorting-view-upheaval.html
Environment Tue, 13 Feb 2018 08:51:52 ESTnews437734303Intensive agriculture influences U.S. regional summer climate, study findsScientists agree that changes in land use such as deforestation, and not just greenhouse gas emissions, can play a significant role altering the world's climate systems. Now, a new study by researchers at MIT and Dartmouth College reveals how another type of land use, intensive agriculture, can impact regional climate.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-intensive-agriculture-regional-summer-climate.html
Environment Tue, 13 Feb 2018 08:09:12 ESTnews437731739Study identifies 'hot spots' of water quality violationsWhile serious violations like those in the Flint, Michigan, crisis are rare, ensuring reliable access to safe drinking water poses challenges for communities across the country, according to a recent study led by the University of California, Irvine.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-hot-quality-violations.html
Environment Mon, 12 Feb 2018 16:51:19 ESTnews437676636Limited scope of corporate sustainability revealedYou want chocolate. You scan the market shelf for a bar with a Fair Trade or Rainforest Alliance certification because you don't want your indulgence to drive labor abuse and deforestation. It's the right thing to do, right?https://phys.org/news/2018-02-limited-scope-corporate-sustainability-revealed.html
Environment Mon, 12 Feb 2018 15:00:08 ESTnews437646273Research team detects an acceleration in the 25-year satellite sea level recordGlobal sea level rise is not cruising along at a steady 3 mm per year, it's accelerating a little every year, like a driver merging onto a highway, according to a powerful new assessment led by CIRES Fellow Steve Nerem. He and his colleagues harnessed 25 years of satellite data to calculate that the rate is increasing by about 0.08 mm/year every year—which could mean an annual rate of sea level rise of 10 mm/year, or even more, by 2100.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-team-year-satellite-sea.html
Environment Mon, 12 Feb 2018 15:00:07 ESTnews437646107Acoustic imaging reveals hidden features of megathrust fault off Costa RicaGeophysicists have obtained detailed three-dimensional images of a dangerous megathrust fault west of Costa Rica where two plates of the Earth's crust collide. The images reveal features of the fault surface, including long grooves or corrugations, that may determine how the fault will slip in an earthquake.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-acoustic-imaging-reveals-hidden-features.html
Earth Sciences Mon, 12 Feb 2018 14:54:47 ESTnews437669674Tiny fossils, huge slides: Are diatoms the key to Earth's biggest slides?The biggest landslides on Earth aren't on land, but on the seafloor. These mega-slides can move thousands of cubic kilometers of material, and sometimes trigger tsunamis. Yet, remarkably, they occur on nearly flat slopes of less than three degrees.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-tiny-fossils-huge-diatoms-key.html
Earth Sciences Mon, 12 Feb 2018 14:30:20 ESTnews437668209Deep-sea fish use hydrothermal vents to incubate eggsSome deep-sea skates—cartilaginous fish related to rays and sharks—use volcanic heat emitted at hydrothermal vents to incubate their eggs, according to a new study in the journal Scientific Reports. Because deep-sea skates have some of the longest egg incubation times, estimated to last more than four years, the researchers believe the fish are using the hot vents to accelerate embryo development. This the first time such behavior has been seen in marine animals.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-deep-sea-fish-hydrothermal-vents-incubate.html
Earth Sciences Mon, 12 Feb 2018 12:06:15 ESTnews437659564Lightning storms less likely in a warming planet, study suggestsLightning may strike less often in future across the globe as the planet warms, a scientific study suggests.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-lightning-storms-planet.html
Earth Sciences Mon, 12 Feb 2018 11:29:43 ESTnews437657373Texas flood: Researchers compare pollution levels before and after Hurricane HarveyRecent years have seen rising interest in improving post-disaster research, with calls for more and better studies coming from the academic community and agencies such as the National Institutes of Health. Although understanding the wide-ranging effects of disasters is vital for an effective public health response, a lack of baseline data has made it difficult to attribute post-disaster changes in environmental conditions to the impacts of disasters.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-texas-pollution-hurricane-harvey.html
Earth Sciences Fri, 09 Feb 2018 09:47:53 ESTnews437392061Small gold mines in Senegal create high mercury contaminationA Duke University-led study has found dangerously high levels of mercury and its more toxic chemical cousin, methylmercury, in soils, sediments and rivers near artisanal gold mines in the West African nation of Senegal.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-small-gold-senegal-high-mercury.html
Environment Fri, 09 Feb 2018 09:45:38 ESTnews437391903No glaciers, no water?The world's largest rivers begin in glaciated mountain regions. However, climate change may cause many glaciers to disappear. Will water become scarce?https://phys.org/news/2018-02-glaciers.html
Earth Sciences Fri, 09 Feb 2018 09:20:34 ESTnews437390417Hayward fault earthquake simulations increase fidelity of ground motionsIn the next 30 years, there is a one-in-three chance that the Hayward fault will rupture with a 6.7 magnitude or higher earthquake, according to the United States Geologic Survey (USGS). Such an earthquake will cause widespread damage to structures, transportation and utilities, as well as economic and social disruption in the East Bay.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-hayward-fault-earthquake-simulations-fidelity.html
Earth Sciences Fri, 09 Feb 2018 07:40:01 ESTnews437384279'Sinking' Pacific nation is getting bigger: studyThe Pacific nation of Tuvalu—long seen as a prime candidate to disappear as climate change forces up sea levels—is actually growing in size, new research shows.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-pacific-nation-bigger.html
Environment Fri, 09 Feb 2018 05:20:45 ESTnews437376034Savanna fires pump Central African forests full of nitrogenThe remote forests of Africa's Congo Basin have long been a blind spot for scientists working to understand how Earth's natural cycles respond to the environmentally unique characteristics of different regions.https://phys.org/news/2018-02-savanna-central-african-forests-full.html
Environment Thu, 08 Feb 2018 14:25:38 ESTnews437322329